People with disabilities in Australia face significant employment barriers. Research and policy initiatives over the past fifteen years have consistently emphasised the benefits of vocational education and training generally, and apprenticeship and traineeships specifically, as leading to positive vocational pathways and employment outcomes for…

There is general consensus that vocational education and training (VET) faces a number of workforce problems, including the ageing of VET teachers, the high level of casualisation, the need to increase the capacity of trainers, and the maintenance of industry currency. These issues, along with the need for the VET sector to respond to critical…

There is a lack of distinction and definition around how the vocational education and training (VET) sector in Australia might effectively recruit and retain suitably qualified teachers, trainers and assessors. The logic is clear: in order to enable and develop an immediate pool of competent and qualified workers for new and developing industries,…

After a period of relative neglect in many countries, apprenticeships and other forms of work-based learning are experiencing a revival. Their effectiveness in easing school-to-work transitions and serving the economy is increasingly recognised. However, engaging individuals, employers, social partners and education and training systems in such…

Research messages 2010 is a collection of summaries of research projects published by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER). The summaries are clustered under five broad themes used by NCVER to organise its research and analysis: Industry and employers; Students and individuals; Teaching and learning: VET system; and VET in…

Examines the comparative labor market experience of youth in the United States and eight other developed countries from 1960-1979, focusing upon unemployment levels and rates. Finds that the situation worsened in industrialized nations after the 1974-75 recession and that Japanese and German youth continue to have the most favorable job prospects.…

Australia's personal and other services industry is the sixth smallest of the 17 industry divisions in numbers employed. The industry, a collection of quite diverse businesses and services in the public and private sectors, has three subdivisions: personal services, other services, and private households employing staff. The employment level has…

The "market" is not a natural phenomenon but a social relationship. Growing gaps in income distribution and changes in employment patterns are dramatically increasing inequality. Vocational and adult educators accept too readily the claim that training can change the economic environment. (SK)

Australia's property and business services industry is its third largest industry and has been the fastest growing industry over the last 10 years. The industry is composed of a diverse range of activities, including real estate sales, legal and accountancy practices, employment placement services, labor and equipment hire, scientific and market…

An initial analysis of self-reported, formal, postschool job training and the labor market outcomes of that training in Great Britain, Australia, and the United States was made through a study of survey results in each of the countries. The data revealed that there is not one kind of training, but various kinds for different purposes, with…

Clerks, salespersons, plant and machine operators and laborers, and related workers, defined as operative workers, currently form more than half the work force. They share the following characteristics: comparatively low earnings, limited qualifications, often employed in industries subject to economic restructuring and sensitive to economic…

Training measures in the U.S. National Longitudinal Survey of Young Men, the National Child Development Study for Britain, and the Australian Longitudinal Survey of Youth were used to study determinants and labor market outcomes of postschool training received by young men. Twelve percent of U.S. youth reported getting formal training in the first…

This bulletin examines the labor market experience of youth in the United States and eight other industrial countries from the early 1960s to the late 1970s. The analysis focuses upon unemployment, the most visible and measurable form of labor underutilization. The report highlights the size of the youth unemployment problem and discusses some of…

Manufacturing in Australia is a large and diverse industry, employing more than 1.1 million people. Despite its decline in relative importance (from providing 16.3% of jobs to providing 13.4%), it is still the second largest employing industry. Manufacturing makes up the major component of exports, accounting for 51 percent in 1994-95. Over the…

Mining is the second smallest industry division in terms both of employment and number of business units in Australia. Employment accounts for less than 1 percent of all jobs. The outlook for employment is clouded by continuing uncertainty in Australia's main Asian markets and by the longer-term impact of environmental concerns. Mining industry…